Middle East News – June 2nd

– Mubarak was given a lifetime imprisonment for his role in the death of protesters during the Arab Spring – His lawyers say they will protest this verdict, which could still drag on for months – Al-Bawaba – His verdict is plagued by complications and doubts as many lower ranking officers have already been acquitted for the same crimes – BBC

– Four kidnapped aide workers have been freed in Afghanistan by coalition forces – BBC

– US courts have demanded that Hilary Clinton (among other government officials) decide within four months whether an Iranian political group should still be classified as a terrorist group – the government’s decision will weigh heavy for other similarly politically oriented groups – CNN

– The ‘land day’ protests held across Israel turned violent as Israeli soldiers fired tear gas into crowds protesting the confiscation of Palestinian land by Israeli authorities – Al-Bawaba

– Jordan has held massive military exercises with troops from nineteen different countries – Though they are officially ‘unrelated’ to the nearby Syrian conflict, its commonly thought they are drills to prepare for spillover from Syria, particularly refugees – Al-Jazeera

– Comparisons are quickly being drawn between the Srebrenica massacre that occurred in the early 1990’s during the breakup of Yugoslavia and the recent Houla massacre in Syria – both were met with outrage, but little direct action immediately – CNN